Ply disorienting machine



Aug. 28, 1951 ALLEN 2,566,107

FLY DISORIENTING MACHINE Filed March 4, 1949 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 F IG, 4

JNVENTQR. ROBERT L. ALLEN ATTORNEY Filed March 4, 1949 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 N at a mL w m M 0 V T mL M T A R L E 0 R B E O 1. 0m 9 v I mm m. LN mm 5 5 mm m N O N Patentecl Aug. 28, 1951 PLY DlSQRIENTINGMACHINE Robert L.Allen, Atlanta, Ga.,"assignor to Georgia Buff Company, Dulu Georgia 'Ga., a corporation. of

Application March 4, 1949, fierial No.i79,571

This invention relates to a mechanical disorienter, and more particularly to a ply disorienting machine.

Certain types of buffing wheels, known as cloth disc wheels, consist essentially of a number of approximately circular layers of cloth which have been sewn together. In certain processes used. to manufacture such wheels, the cloth discs are out from larger pieces of cloth in batches of approximately two-hundred discs. As received from the cutting machine, these discs are oriented; i. e., the warp threads of each piece of cloth are more or less parallel to the warp threads of all the other pieces in the same batch, and thewoof threads of the discs in each batch are aligned in the same manner.

In order that uniform wear will be had on the working edge of a cloth disc wheel, it is necessarythat the layers of cloth be disoriented. This disorientation of the plies has heretofore been accomplished by hand.

An object of my invention is to provide a ma chine for disorienting pliesof cloth and similar materials.

Another object of my invention is to provide 2. ply disorienting machine which is simple in design, eflicient in operation, rugged in construction'and inexpensive to manufacture.

Other and further objects and advantages of my invention will be apparent from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which similar characters of reference designate corresponding parts ciple of my invention.

Fig. 4 is a schematic diagram illustrating a modified form.

Fig. 5 is a detail cross-sectional View. It has been found that if sheets of resilient material such as paper or cloth are placed on a solid plane such as a table and a cylindrical roller placed on top, deformation of the material under the roller will take place; the top layer of material'will conform to the curvature of the roller, and the bottom layer will have very little or no deformation. The deformation of the layers between the top and bottom layer will be progressively less from the top down. If the Claims. (01. 154-1 by reference to Fig. 3.

roller is caused to roll along'the materiahthe various layers will move relative to the table, and thedegree of this movement will be proportional to the previous deformation of the material. This alsocauses the relative movement between the layers to be progressively greater from the bottom of the layer to the top of the layer. The relative movements between the layers will be the same if the roller is allowed to rotate freely and the table and layers are moved under the roller, since this relative movement is proportional to the amount of deformation or radius of curvature of the layers under the roller.

If a resilient material such as sponge rubber, or the like, is placed on the table under the layers of cloth, then the relative deformation of the bottom layers becomes greater, and the radius of curvature of the individual layers becomes approximatelyproportional to the distance from the center of the roller. Then if the table is moved under the roller, the relative motion between the layers of cloth becomes approximately uniform. The reason for this may be explained For a wheel rotating about its axis, the velocity of any point on the wheel is proportional to its distance from the center of rotation. In Fig. 3, the line OAB is a line drawn from the center of the wheel to the bottom layer of material. Since there is little or no slipping under the roller, the velocity of any point along line OAB will be proportional to the distance from 0. Therefore, if the velocity of the table is represented by the line BC and the velocity of the wheel rim by line AD, the velocity of the various layers 'will be represented by lines drawn from the point these layers cross the line OAB.

Fig. 4 shows other means by which the desired result can be accomplished. Any means which will force the material against the roller and make it conform to the roller through an arc will accomplish this result, and it is immaterial whether the roller is the driving or the driven means.

In explanation of why the roller should preferably be a section of a cone for angular disorientation, it may be noted that a cylinder may be considered a section of a cone in which the distance to the apex of the cone is infinitely great,

and the movement of the plies can be considered to be rotating about a center which is also infinitely far away. If the apex of the cone and center of rotation are moved in to a finite distance, then the rolling action will cause a relative angular displacement of the plies with respect to one another. In order for the movement to be uniform and geometrically correct, the thickness of the plies should taper from the outer edge to zero at the center. However, since the actual thickness of the commercial plies is uniform, the action is better if a small truncated section of a cone is used insteadof the whole cone. y

In the embodiment chosen for illustration in Figs. 1 and 2, a platform I0 is supported upon upright frame members H and is provided with a turntable |2 which is arranged to be rotated by a suitable source of motive power, as for example, electric motor I3 which is. connected to pulley I4 by belt l5. Switch I6 is provided for turning the motor on and off. To facilitate handling the material to be disoriented, the turntable I2 is shown mounted in a hole cutout of the platform It], the top of the turntable being on a level with the top of the platform.

The turntable I2 is partially covered with a resilient base I! of sponge rubber or other suitable material. As shown in Fig. 5, the resilient material may be in the form of an annular ring; and if the width thereof is substantially the same as the width of the roller, it will not curve up and cause undesirable distortion. The plies 8 of material to be disoriented are placed around a pin l9, in the center of the turntable l2, so-as to rest upon the resilient base H.

An upright collar 20 is fixed to horizontal frame member II and forms a support within which yoke 2| isrotatably mounted. An arm 22 terminates in a handle 23 and is pivotally mounted, at its opposite end, as at '24, in the yoke 2|. The arm 22 carries a hub 25 within which a shaft 26 is mounted for free rotation. Mounted on the shaft 26 for rotation therewith is a roller 21 having a truncated conical surface 21. p

Depending from the arm 22 is a wheel 28 which runs upon an elevated track 29 and supports the arm 22 when it is in the inoperative position shown in Fig. 1. When the arm 22 is swung. to the operating position, shown in Fig. 2, the wheel 28 lodges in a groove 30 in the track 29. In this position, the axisof rotation of the truncated cone-shaped roller 2'7 intersects or lies close to the axis of rotation of the turntable l2. A spring 3|, mounted between the arm 22 and a bracket 33 extending from the top of yoke 2|, is provided to assist in forcing the arm 22 and the associated roller 27 into the operating position.

In the operation of my ply disorienting. ma-

chine, with the arm 22 swung to the inoperative position shown in Fig. 1, a plurality of plies of cloth, or other material to be disoriented, are placed upon the turntable l2 just as they come from the cutter. With the pin l9 projecting through the central hole customarily punched in such material, the bottommo'st ply will rest upon the resilient base IT. The arm '22 is then swung around and the wheel 28 runs upon the elevated track 29 until it drops into the slot 30. The weight of the arm 22, aided by the action of spring 3| and perhaps the pressure of the operator's hand upon the handle 23, if necessary, forces the roller 2'! down against the plies |8 so as to compress the resilient base I! beneath the roller. The switch it is then thrown to the On position and as electric motor l3 drives the turntable |2 to rotate the plies It the conical surface 2? of the roller 2'7 rolls over the plies, which are compressed between the roller and the resilient base I1, and disorients them, as shown in Fig.

2. When the plies have been sufficiently disoriented, the switch |6 is thrown to the Off position, the arm 23 is swung to the inoperative position shown in Fig. 1, and the disoriented batch of plies may then be lifted from the machine preparatory to placing another batch of plies on the machine for disorientation.

Having thus described the construction and operation of my invention, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that many modifications and changes. may be made without departing from the scope of my invention as defined in the following claims.

I claim:

1. In a machine of the class described, the combination comprising a roller having a surface lying in the surface of a cone arranged for engagement with a batch of plies to be disoriented, means presenting an opposed surface resiliently deformable approximately to the shape of said first mentioned surface through an arc and engaging the opposite side of said batch of plies to be disoriented.

2. In a machine of the class described, the combination comprising a roller having a truncated conical surface arranged for engagement with a batch of plies to be disoriented, means we senting an opposed surface resiliently deformable approximately to the shape of said truncated conical surface through an arc and engaging the opposite side of said batch of plies to be disoriented, and driving means for passing said batch of plies between said surfaces.

3. In a machine of the class described, the combination comprising a rotatably mounted turntable, resilient material carried on said turntable and upon which the batch of plies of material to be disoriented is placed, a roller having an axially sloping surface arranged for engagement with said batch of plies to be disoriented so as to compress the same against, said resilient material, and motive power means connected to rotate said'turntable and batch of plies to be disoriented beneath said roller.

4. In a machine of the class described. a first compressive means comprising a rotatably mounted turntable, resilient material carried by said turntable and upon which the batch of plies of material to be disoriented is placed, a second compressive means comprising a roller having a conically sloping surface arranged for engagement with said batch of plies to be disoriented so as to compress the same against said resilient material, and motive power means connected to rotate one of said compressive means to pass the batch of material beneath said roller and thereby disorient the plies.

5. In a machine of the class described, thecombination comprising a rotatably mounted turntable, resilient material carried on said turntable and upon which the batch of plies of material to be disoriented is placed, a pivotally mounted arm, a shaft carried by said arm and mounted for free rotation, a roller mounted on said shaft .for rotation therewith, said roller having a sloping surface arranged for engagement with said batch of plies to be disoriented so as to compress the same against said resilient material, and motive power means connected to rotate said turntable and batch of plies to be disoriented beneath said roller.

6. In. a machine of the class described, a first compressive means comprising a rotatably mounted turntable, resilient material carried by said turntable and upon which the batch of plies of material to be disoriented is placed, a pivotally mounted arm, a shaft carried by said arm and mounted for rotation, a second compressive means comprising a roller mounted on said shaft for rotation therewith, said roller having a surface lying in the surface of a cone and arranged for engagement with said batch of plies to be disoriented so as to compress the same against said resilient material, and motive power means to rotate one of said compressive means to pass the batch of material beneath said roller and thereby disorient the plies.

'7. In a machine of the class described, the combination comprising a platform having a hole therein, a turntable mounted for rotation in said hole, resilient material carried by said turntable. a pin projecting from said turntable and over which the batch of plies of material to be disoriented is placed so as to rest upon said resilient material, a yoke mounted for rotation with respect to said platform, an arm terminating in a handle at one end and having its opposite end pivotally mounted in said yoke, a shaft carried by said arm and mounted for free rotation, a roller mounted on said shaft for rotation therewith, said roller having a truncated conical surface arranged for engagement with said batch of plies to be disoriented so as to compress the same against said resilient material when in the operative position, means arranged to hold said arm in an elevated position when said roller is moved to its inoperative position, and motive power means connected to rotate said turntable and batch of plies to be disoriented beneath said roller in its operative position.

8. In a machine of the class described, a platform having a hole therein, a first compressive means comprising a turntable mounted for rotation in said hole, resilient material carried by said turntable, a pin projecting from said turntable and over which the batch of plies of material to be disoriented is placed so as to rest upon said resilient material, a yoke mounted for rotation with respect to said platform, an arm terminating in a handle at one end and having its opposite end pivotally mounted in said yoke, a rotatably mounted shaft carried by said arm, a second compressive means comprising a roller mounted on said shaft for rotation therewith, said roller having a truncated conical surface arranged for engagement with said batch of plies to be disoriented so as to compress the same against said resilient material when in the operative position, means arranged to hold said arm in an elevated position when said roller is moved to its inoperative position, and motive power means connected to rotate one of said compressive means to pass the batch of plies beneath said roller in its operative position and thereby disorient the plies.

9. In a machine of the class described, the combination comprising a platform having a hole therein, a turntable mounted for rotation in said hole, a ring of resilient material supported on said turntable, a pin projecting from said turntable and over which the batch of plies of material to be disoriented is placed so as to rest upon said resilient material, a yoke mounted for rotation with respect to said platform, an arm terminating in a handle at one end, and having its opposite end pivotally mounted in said :yoke, a hub carried by said arm, a shaft mounted for free rotation in said hub, a roller mounted on said shaft for rotation therewith, said roller having a truncated conical surface arranged for engagement with said batch of plies to be disoriented so as to compress the same against said resilient material when in the operative position, spring means arranged to force said roller against said material to be disoriented, a wheel depending from said arm, a track having a notch in which said wheel rests when said roller is in its operative position, said track having an elevated portion upon which said wheel runs when said roller is moved to its inoperative position, and motive power means connected to rotate said turntable and batch of plies to be disoriented beneath said roller in its operative position.

10. In a machine of the class described, the combination comprising a platform having a hole therein, a turntable mounted for rotation in said hole, the top of said turntable being on a level with the top of said platform, a ring of sponge rubber supported on said turntable, a pin projecting from said turntable and over which the batch of plies of material to be disoriented is placed so as to rest upon said ring of sponge rubber, a yoke mounted for rotation about an axis perpendicular to said platform, an arm terminating in a handle at one end and having its opposite end pivotally mounted in said yoke, a hub carried by said arm, a shaft mounted for free rotation in said hub, a roller mounted on said shaft for rotation therewith, said roller having a truncated conical surface arranged for engagement with said batch of plies to be disoriented so as to compress the same against said ring of sponge rubber when in the operative position, spring means arranged to force said roller against said material, a wheel depending from said arm, a track having a notch in which said wheel rests when said roller is in its operative position, said track having an elevated portion upon which said wheel runs when said roller is moved to its inoperative position, and motive power means connected to rotate said turntable and batch of plies to be disoriented beneath said roller in its operative position.

ROBERT L. ALLEN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,346,612 Stokes July 13, 1920 1,788,382 Cushwa Jan. 13, 1931 2,037,666 Pennington Apr. 14, 1935 

